Love Vs In Love
by LuvD98
Summary: A sweet love story about Eclare, set in the good old days. Read how Eli and Clare's relationship blossoms from friendship to love. For those of you who like simple and sweet, with a dash of drama here and there...
1. sight for sore eyes

**Hey guys! So, I'm starting a new story… and I'm a little rusty, I haven't written in a while! I even had to go back and read my other story I Don't Mind to remember what is was about… not sure if I'm going to continue that one, unless I get some requests to? This is going to be a pretty easy going story… I miss the old Eclare! I'm not sure how I'm going to take it yet… Leave a review and tell me what you think! I'm just going to dive in and get the hang of writing and publishing again! I consider myself kind of a newbie to fan fiction still, considering I only have one other story! The title might change, but for now, I'm naming this story Love vs. In Love. Enjoy! Review and help me out? **

**Clare's POV**

I look at myself in the mirror, conflicted with my own image. I had just got done with my hair and thrown on my new outfit for the first day of my sophomore year. My auburn locks perfectly curled, my makeup done with care, looking as natural as ever… but I still wasn't satisfied. I look over my outfit, consisting of dark wash skinny jeans, a black fitted tank, my favorite lacey, red long sleeved cardigan, and my black studded sandals. I guess I look presentable… but something felt off and I couldn't put my finger on it. I decide to ignore it and make my way to the kitchen, every creak in the floor audible as I saunter down the wooden stairs. I immediately spot the familiar yellow lined paper on the counter. _Figures…_ I open it up, it reads:

_**Clare,**_

_**Will be gone for a few days on business- **__pshh business my ass__**- No guests while I'm gone. Make sure to feed Lilly and clean up after yourself.**_

_**-Randal**_

I crumple up the pointless note and throw it in the trash; at least he even left a note this time. _Not that it matters, we never talk anyways._ I don't even know why he bothers trying to lie to me. Does he think I'm stupid? Does he think I don't know the real reason him and my mom split up? Screw "we just fell out of love", more like "I've been screwing my secretary". How does someone just fall out of love anyways? I never understood that (maybe because I've never experienced love, but still). How can you claim to love someone and then all the sudden you just aren't "feeling it" anymore? I shake my head at the thought and open the fridge. No food… again. _I guess I'll skip breakfast… _Grabbing my bag and my keys, I start making my way to Degrassi, unsure of what kind of day lies ahead. As I near the school, I spot my best friend, Adam. He's seriously the sweetest and funniest guy you will ever come across. He's been there for me through do much, whether it is family problems or my self- loathing, I know I can always count on him to brighten my day. He greets me with a huge bear hug, practically squeezing the life out of me.

"What up? How's your morning been Edwards? Ready for our sophomore year?"

"Ready as I'll ever be… what are your classes?" I ask, grabbing for his schedule paper. I read over the list of classes and am excited to see that we share two classes "We share English 10XL and Math!" I beam at Adam, knowing that with him by my side, this day couldn't be that bad…_ hopefully. _

RIIIIINNNNGGG RING RING

The bell chimes loudly, signaling the swarming crowd to get to their first class. I head to English with Adam and we find seats in the back of the half-full classroom. I look around to see many unfamiliar faces. As far as I saw, I only knew Adam. He seemed to be pretty well acquainted with a few people though, making conversation and fist bumping all the way to his seat. The final bell rings, quickly bringing my attention to the front of the room, before I start doodling in my journal.

I listen to the teacher as she makes the cliché first day of school speech "Hello students! My name is Mrs. Dawes. Welcome to English 10XL. I want to start off by saying—" The classroom door slams, cutting her sentence short. "Well. How nice of you to join us Mr. Goldsworthy." I look up from my journal to see a boy dressed in black from head to toe. His hair was even black, long and messy. I look him over again, sweeping my eyes over his tall, lean body, to his defined face and his pale skin.

"Oh, it's my pleasure Mrs. Dawes." My thoughts are cut short when I hear his smooth, velvety voice. I hear the sarcasm drip from his lips like honey, which makes me snicker a bit in my head. I feel Adam nudge me but all I can do is focus on _him._

Mrs. Dawes rolls her eyes "ill cut you some slack since it is your first day here at Degrassi, but try not to be late to my class from now on. Oh, and I am an English teacher Mr. Goldsworthy, I do know sarcasm when I hear it. You can take a seat behind Ms. Edwards." my head snaps in her direction as she points to me. My eyes flicker back to him and I realize he is looking at me. I feel the heat rise to my face, surely making my cheeks noticeably pink. Without a word, he slowly makes his way to the seat behind me, holding eye contact with me the whole way there. I realize now how captivating his eyes are. Two pools of deep jade green. I finally find the power to pull my gaze away from his, hearing Adam snicker in the background. I glare at him before he whispers "Smooth Clare, smooth." My thoughts drift back to the boy now sitting behind me, feeling him shuffle into his seat. There's something so mesmerizing about him, the way he carried himself with such confidence, the way he looked into my eyes, unreadable. One side of me makes me want to get to know this mysterious looking boy, yet the other side wants to run and hide.

**Eli's POV**

The teacher finally points me to my seat after pointlessly trying to scold me for my tardiness. I follow her finger and my eyes immediately catch them. Two blue orbs, my curiosity sparks. I take in the sight of a petite looking girl in the desk in front of mine. She is looking at me, wide eyed and face flushed. I can't help but stare into her eyes as I walk to my seat, taking in the pure beauty. She isn't just another one of those 'hot' girls in school, she's got an innocent beauty to her. It's interesting and I wonder what it is about her… is it her pink, plump lips? Her fair skin? Those vivid blue eyes? She breaks eyes contact, clearly flustered, which gives me a bit of an ego boost. I zone out the rest of the class period, all I can think about are those blue eyes looking up at me.

**Okay! I realize this is a really, really rough start… but I told you guys I haven't written in a while! And I'm just going with the flow right now. I'm sorry if this was boring guys. My introductions are usually pretty rocky… and it's short. Ugh! The next chapters will definitely be longer and hopefully more developed. I hope it was semi-enjoyable! Tell me in a review! **** And check out my other story ****I Don't Mind****... I might start that again once I get into writing like I used to. xoxo**

**-LuvD98-**


	2. Well That's Good to Know

**So… still unsure about writing this since I have no direction. I'm going to continue though! Read, review, enjoy!**

**Clare's POV**

"Adam, no…" I plead, hoping my puppy dog eyes would work for once.

"Why not?! He looks lonely, and he's actually pretty nice! I have him in a couple classes. Oh, and he reads comic books." Adam says this with the biggest smile and I wonder if there's ever anything else on his mind besides those damn comic books.

"Well, can't you talk about your comic books with him in class or some other time?" I ask in irritation. We had almost got to our table to sit down for lunch when Adam spotted the boy from English. Apparently his name was Eli, and he and Adam hit it off pretty well today, considering how much Adam is bugging me about going to sit with him. It's not that I don't really want to meet him… believe me, he's been on my mind since first period, but that doesn't mean I'm up for humiliating myself on the first day of school, I don't know how I would, but I always seem to find a way.

"Clare, just because you're all hot and bothered over Eli doesn't mean you can't be friends with him" he teases me and laughs when my face flushes "I figured you would want to meet him the way you were looking at him earlier" he wiggles his eyebrows.

"It's not that I don't—" I try to defend myself but he cuts me short.

"Well then come on" he gives my arm a tug, encouraging me to take a step.

"Ugh, fine…" _Be cool Clare…_ I study Eli as we walk over. He's in the shade, leaning against a big oak tree, reading. I shake my head, probably a comic book… I take a closer look, and realize I was wrong. He's actually reading a novel, a pretty big one at that. I don't remember the last time I've seen a boy my age reading anything other than a magazine about cars or comics… it's refreshing. And just furthers my curiosity over who this new, very attractive guy is. As we approach Eli, he looks up and smirks, his lips looking delicious. _Stop it Clare._

**Eli's POV**

I had just sat down outside in the grass and pulled out my book for lunch break, thinking about my first day so far. This school isn't really my cup of tea, but I can deal. I did meet a couple of people today who weren't complete assholes. There's this guy Adam in a couple of my classes, including English. I noticed that he's friends with the girl that sits in front of me… I'm not sure how good of friends though, they seemed a bit closer than just friends. _Not that I'm jealous or anything._ He seems like a pretty cool guy and I don't want to break bro code, which is why I've been trying really hard to not think about Clare and those amazing blue eyes. I look up from my book. _Speak of the devil…_ I spot her and Adam talking in the courtyard. Her brows are furrowed and Adam grabs her arm. As they look in my direction I quickly look down at my book, hoping they didn't notice my staring. I look up as they approach me, trying not give Clare's body a once over (which didn't work) as my eyes shifted to theirs.

"Hey loner. What up?" Adam drops down on the grass next to me. I roll my eyes and give Adam a fist bump. "We decided to grace you with our presence since you looked so lonesome and pathetic."

"Oh, well how nice of you" I reply sarcastically. I notice how Clare slowly, almost apprehensively, sits down in front of me and Adam. "Hey, Clare right?" I study her face and she smiles nervously and twiddles with her fingers. _She's adorable…_

"Hi, yeah I'm Clare." She pushes her hair behind her ear and kind of looks down "You must be Eli. Adam hasn't shut up about you all day." she giggles.

"Don't give me away like that Clare!" Adam shoves her playfully… _Ugh, I hope to God they're just friends…_

"So how has your first day been?" Clare asks me. Her blue eyes are so captivating and I lose my train of thought for a second.

"It's been okay, but is it just me or are all the guys douchbags?"

"I resent that!" Adam exclaims.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"So, how long have you guys been together?" I had been contemplating on asking this throughout the entire lunch, but based on their looks I should have just kept that question in my head. They were looking at me as if I had two heads! And on top of that, they are laughing at me. _Way to go Eli._ Even though I feel like a fool, I can't help but smile at Clare's cute little giggle.

"Us… together?" Clare says between her uncontrollable laughter. "Definitely not! We're just friends."

"Dude what even gave you that idea?" Adam shakes his head

"Well, I just figured… I don't know."

"Yeah, umm, you don't have to worry about that Eli. Haha Clare is available." I tensely glance at Clare and see that she has her head down and she's biting her lip. I decided to take it a little further…

"Well that's good to know" I shoot her a wink as the bell rings, signaling the end of lunch.

**Okay guys! That's what I got right now. I hope it suffices! I know its short right now but I'll get better as the story progresses. Tell me what you think so far, thanks! **


	3. The Magic Touch

**Hey people! So I have no idea if you guys are even liking my story… I got less views this time and absolutely no reviews, but I figure I won't give up! I like simple stories with maybe a twist or two and that what I plan on doing for this story. So I hope you enjoy! Leave a review and tell me what you thought **

**Eli's POV**

"Clare!" I shout out the car window as I pull over next to her. She looks up, startled.

"Oh, hey Eli…" I watch as she pushes her auburn locks behind her ear.

"Want a ride?"

"Umm, I don't know. I can walk." She's clearly focused on my long black vehicle, probably wondering if I'm carrying any dead people in the back with me. but I can't blame her, that's usually the normal response when people first lay eyes on Morty.

"Come on Clare, I don't bite." _That hard…_ I shake my head, trying to rid those certain thoughts. "Just get in the hearse Clare, I promise I'm the only one in here." I tease. She smirks a bit and heads over to the passenger side. I quickly get out and head around the front of the car, beating her to the door, and open it for her. Once she's in I gently shut it and get in the driver's seat.

"No offence or anything Eli, but is this really your car?" She asks as if it's a ridiculous idea

"Of course! Morty and I have been solid for about a year now" I pat the black dash "Are you scared Edwards?"

She glances up at me, never holding eye contact for longer than a couple seconds "Me? Never."

"Whatever you say" I roll my eyes "where to?" As she's giving me directions, I notice how familiar these streets are… and before I know it, she's directing me onto my street. It can't be… she tells me to stop and I realize that I'm literally two houses down from her. Did I just become the luckiest guy on earth? "This is where you live? Really?" I point to the cottage-looking two story house.

"No, I just wanted you to drop me off at this completely random house. Yes, I live here Eli." She laughs "Why?"

"Because I live two houses down from you Clare."

"Oh, I didn't know you were the new neighbor. Wow, then you only moved here like a week ago or something?"

"Yeah, around then. Well, I'll see you at school neighbor." I shoot her a smirk

**Clare's POV**

Wow, either the world really hates me, or really loves me right now. I just found out that this gorgeous, witty, really nice guy lives two houses down from me. This could either be a hug blessing or turn into a huge curse… I decide to consider it a blessing today, surprising not only Eli, but also myself when I say "Wait, Eli. Did you want to come in? hang out for a while?" At first he doesn't respond, which makes me feel like a complete idiot. Why would he want to waste his time and hang out with me on a perfectly good afternoon? Ugh, I'm so stupid, stupid, stu—

"Yeah, that sounds perfect" Wait, what? "I was hoping you would ask." He winks again before parking 'Morty'. What is up with him and winking at me? I walk up the steps to my front door, trying to conceal my blush, and unlock the door. Thank God my dad is gone; he would have made this so awkward. There's no chance he would know I had 'company' either. Lilly, my German Shepherd greets me excitedly. She jumps up and wags her tail, but stops short when she sees Eli.

"She doesn't really take well to strangers, sorry. I can put her outside." And then, like magic, Eli bends down and Lilly runs right up to him, as happy as ever as he scratches her belly. I stare in amazement. The only person that dog has ever liked was me and my dad. Last time someone besides us tried to pet her like that, she bit him. "How did you do that?" He gives me a confused look. "She doesn't ever do that, she hates people!"

"I guess I just have the magic touch." He responds nonchalantly. I just continue to shake my head and walk to the kitchen

"Want anything to drink?" he doesn't answer. "Eli?"

"Oh yeah, sorry. Umm, I'm good, thanks." _Suit yourself…_ I walk back into the living room and see Eli going through the movie selection. I take a seat on the couch while he puts in a movie.

"What did you put in?"

"Just watch." He sits next to my, our thighs touching. I feel the heat radiate between our bodies. The close proximity is enough to make me want to lean over and rest my head on his shoulder. He rests his hand on the edge of his thigh, touching mine the slightest bit and I have a feeling it wasn't on accident. I look up at him through my eyelashes and catch him staring at me.

"What?" I ask

"Nothing."

"Ugh, I hate that. Now you have to tell me!"

"I don't have to tell you anything…" he smirks at me and gives me a challenging look. Confidence sparks in me and I face him.

"True, but I bet I could get it out of you."

"Oh yeah? And how would you do that?"

"Well first…" I graze my fingers up his arm slightly "I'll tease you…" I lean towards him and lower my voice "and play with you…" he's looking straight into my eyes. The pools of green mesmerizing and distracting me.

"Oh? And what else you got Edwards?" he leans forward ever so slightly, leaning me further into the couch as his chest presses to mine. My breath hitches and my eyes flutter. "That's what I thought." He says as he leans back up to a normal seated position. _Damn him! _I playfully slap his chest as he laughs at my clear frustration. The movie comes on and I'm surprised to see a comedy. I was expecting some sort of horror from him. I feel myself relax when the opining scene starts. Eli chuckles at the screen. I wonder how a laugh could be so sexy. He casually puts his arm over the back of the couch behind me. Not caring about being too forward, I lean in to him, encouraging his arm to come down around my shoulders. For the first time, he actually smiles at me, lowering his arm and squeezing me for a moment. That's the moment I really understand the meaning of "a magic touch".


End file.
